


The Sound of Silence

by IcyPheonix



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! GX
Genre: Canon Compliant, M/M, Reunions, good ending, proshipping - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-14
Updated: 2018-02-14
Packaged: 2019-03-18 12:52:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,729
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13682067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IcyPheonix/pseuds/IcyPheonix
Summary: Edo comes back from the dead after the events in Dark World, only to notice that a certain someone is missing.And it hurts.





	The Sound of Silence

**Author's Note:**

> Because it happened to occur to me during a rewatch that, Edo would have had no idea that Kaiser had DIED, and would only find out after he (and the others) came back from Dark World.   
> ouch

Hell Kaiser Ryo had a presence that was hard to miss and even harder to ignore, so when Edo stepped back into the real world, the fact that Ryo was not with them was the first thing he noticed. He should have been there with them, even Jim and O’Brien had made it back, so why not him?

“Where’s Kaiser?” The words came out of Edo’s mouth before he could stop himself.

Chronos placed a sympathetic hand on Shou’s shoulders as the young duelist’s eyes began to mist over again and a sinking feeling settled in his gut.

 

Chronos’ words still echoed in his mind as he sank to the floor of his yacht, back pressed to the door and his head in his hands. He should never have asked; he would have preferred not knowing.

_“It was his heart, it couldn’t hold out,” said Chronos in a somber tone. “It finally gave out I’m afraid.”_

Edo clenched his teeth, it meant he hadn’t been done in by a duel; he would have come back like everyone else if that had happened.

“You weren’t supposed to die. I didn’t sacrifice myself just so you could die.”

 

Hell Kaiser wasn’t the sort of person you got attached to; he was rough, abrasive and shrewd and had little tolerance for anything that annoyed him, which was most everything. And yet, attached Edo got, and how could he not, after spending countless days and nights at his side during their time in the Dark World. Fighting alongside him as they searched for clues about Judai and what had become of him.

But there was something else he saw, another side to Kaiser, one that Kaiser probably wouldn’t admit to existing, even at gunpoint.

On more than one occasion Edo had woken up to find a blanket draped over him, or found the fire stoked with more wood. Once he’d ended up half carried to their shared bed because he was too exhausted to go on his own.

‘Because you’re no good as a duelist frozen,’ replied Kaiser whenever Edo asked about it. Even if it was true it still felt like an oddly kind gesture coming from the gruff duelist.

Attached, that had to be why it hurt so much, why the very thought of Ryo being gone sent a stab of pain through his heart.

 

Saiou didn’t need his clairvoyant powers to see Edo was upset, it was clear the moment he met the younger man’s gaze he was bothered.

“Talk to me Edo.”

Edo rarely confided in anyone, Saiou was the exception to that rule, he always had been. A listening ear, a cup of tea and a chair was all he needed to offer.

His hands trembled as he held the cup, shaking so badly it threatened to spill the contents all over the floor. He didn’t even know where to begin, what to say, there was so much, and so little. Luckily for him, Saiou was patient.

“I never got to say goodbye,” he said after several long moments. “Again.”

Saiou’s eyes softened and he placed a comforting hand on his arm. “Tell me about him.”

So he did, he told him how he’d been tasked with finding and bringing Hell Kaiser back to Duel Academy after the school and half the students quite literally vanished into thin air, into another dimension really. They had needed someone with a strong dueling sprit to duel; producing energy enough to keep a portal open so they could get a single card through, one that would hopefully help in bringing everyone home. Talking him into it hadn’t been hard; he was always up for a challenge and was looking for a reason to challenge Johan Andersen, even if they never did finish their duel.

He told him about how they’d ended up dragged through another portal, into a different dimension, and about everything that happened there. Duels there had a sort of thrill to them, one he admittedly enjoyed a little, especially when it involved playing the role of a ‘dark hero’ alongside Kaiser. He stopped a moment when a conversation they’d had resurfaced in his memory.

It was shortly after the appearance of Haou and his army, when they had to fight to survive more than usual.

_“Promise me something Edo,” said Kaiser. “If I die out here, don’t stop and mourn for me. Keep fighting, there’s still much left to be done.”_

Did that promise still count, now that he was home and the danger gone? He didn’t doubt it, Kaiser wouldn’t have wanted him to sit around and mourn.

“ _Keep fighting._ ”

 

In the coming days Edo threw himself headlong into his dueling, coming back more fierce than ever after his long, unexplained absence from the circuit. There may not have been an evil dark lord to take down, but there were still many opponents, and if Kaiser weren’t there to fight them, he’d just fight for him. Just like he’d promised.

 

Then one day it happened, his cell phone, his personal one, rang. Edo could count on one hand how many people had that number, one of them was in the room with him at the moment and the others had no reason to call. That meant it was probably Judai, how he’d gotten hold of that number Edo never found out.

The voice that sounded on the other end when he answered however was NOT Judai, though that was probably who had given them the number.

“Shou?”

“E-Edo!” He sounded breathless and excited on the other end and it took him a few moments of huffing and puffing to catch his breath and find his voice. “It’s my brother! He’s back, he’s alive!”

The phone nearly fell from his hands in shock; he had to have misheard because it just wasn’t possible. Kaiser was, alive? But there was no reason for Shou to lie about something like that.

He found himself inside a helicopter minutes later, headed straight for the island.

 

Surprisingly he found himself greeted by Judai, who gestured with his head to the school, his arms full of cat. “He’s up in the infirmary,” he said.

He’d heard that Judai he returned, the news had burned him up at the time, why had he returned but not Kaiser? Looking at him he saw a clear change in him from the duelist he’d seen before; his tone of voice, the way he held himself, the lack of a smile, he had changed. Though for the better or worse Edo couldn’t be sure.

 

Ryo was where he’d spent the last little while, looking out the window from his room, confined to a wheelchair. He’d shed the heavy leather jacket he’d worn for so long, wearing lighter, looser fitting clothes instead.

“Lock the door behind you Edo,” he said, barely glancing behind him at the sound of the opening door. “Fubuki’s already been by three times today and as much as I appreciate his concern it’s smothering.”

“How’d you know it was me?”

A small smirk tugged at his lips as he tilted his head slightly to look at Edo. “We lived together for weeks, I know the sound of your footsteps.”

“I see.” He was quiet a moment before speaking again. “You know, Shou told me about what happened. One day back and you get into a duel that lands you in the hospital, how typical of you.” Edo slipped his hands into his pockets as he walked, dragging a chair over to sit in. What was he even supposed to say in a situation like this anyways?

“It’s Shou’s now you know,” said Kaiser, saving Edo the problem of thinking of what to say. “The Cyber Dark Deck, it’s his.”

“Is that so? I guess I’ll have to duel him sometime then, see how good he is.”

Ryo smirked slightly, “I’ll warn you, he’s no pushover anymore.”

“Good, I look forward to a challenge.”

They lapsed into a prolonged silence, Ryo staring out the window intently.

“Get me out of here,” he said finally.

“What?”

“This room. It’s stuffy and confining. I just need to get out without nurses hanging around me.”

“What do you want me to do about it?”

“Like I said, get me out of here.”

 

Of course, smuggling Ryo out of his room required two things, the first being getting past the eagle-eyed nurses, the second was deciding where to go once outside. It was a toss up as to which was more difficult. Ryo wanted to go somewhere far from the infirmary, but it also had to be accessible to his wheelchair, having been confined to it while he healed so as not to put undue stress on his heart.

“At least you haven’t lost your rebellious streak,” said Edo with a sigh.

Ryo smirked, “And why would I?”

Edo laughed slightly as they came to a stop. “How’s this, far enough away for your liking?”

“It’s fine,” said Ryo, looking ahead to the ocean that stretched out before them, waves lapping at the beach below.

Edo let his hands fall to his sides, there were to many things he wanted to say, but the words kept dying in his throat before he could say anything.

Ryo opened his mouth to speak but stopped as a weight fell against the back of his shoulders and Edo’s arms slipped around him. It took him a moment to realize that he was being hugged.

“Ed what…?”

“You were gone,” said Ed quietly. “I came back expecting to see you again and you were gone. And I never got to say goodbye.” His grip tightened and Ryo became aware of the fact that Edo was trembling. “I thought I would never see you again.”

Ryo was quiet as he sat there, what could he even say to that? Somehow ‘I’m sorry’ didn’t seem like it would cut it.

“Well, I don’t think I’ll be going anywhere anytime soon,” he said finally.

“You better not. After all, I think we have some catching up to do.”

A tiny smile tugged at the corner of Ryo’s mouth as he tilted his head slightly to look at Edo, who’d shifted his position.

 

Kaiser Ryo had a presence that was hard to miss and even harder to ignore, and Edo couldn’t have been happier to be in it.

**Author's Note:**

> this has been sitting unfinished for, a while(I actually forgot about it) so I decided to finish it and post it.
> 
>  
> 
> Happy Valentines Day.


End file.
